Nightmares and Comfort
by Roazell
Summary: In the aftermath of the Grand Magic Games, Natsu is left with nightmares of his best friend's death - except when he wakes up one day, she's gone. One-shot.


"_I came here… to kill that person," Future Rogue said gravely. Natsu felt a shiver run down his spine at the ponytailed man's grim words._

"_How scary… won't that person cooperate once we explain the situation?" Charle asked, forever the only rational one of the group._

"_There's no need to kill them!" Pantherlily added, sounding a bit perplexed._

"_Sometimes, it's impossible to stop actions with words." Future Rogue narrowed his eyes. "Even if we can convince them now… they'll definitely close the doors."_

"_Definitely?" Lucy repeated, a look of worry on her face. Future Rogue nodded._

"_We can't escape fate. Some people live and some die." His hand subtly slips into his robe, out of sight. "The one who closes the door will close it, as long as they live."_

_Natsu felt the hairs on the back of his neck rise, and frowned, his brow furrowing. He didn't like the way this guy was talking, as if killing someone was the easiest way to save the world – as if it were his job to decide a person's fate of life or death. This guy didn't act at all like this time's Rogue, who followed Sting's cruel talking and smirking with an air of hesitation. Natsu knew there was good in that Rogue; the one who stood before them, however, seemed to be the complete opposite._

"_I don't really get it," Natsu said, waving a hand questioningly. "Who is it anyway?"_

_Future Rogue closed his eyes, and when they opened, there was a light in them that set Natsu on edge._

"_You."_

_Nobody moved as he spoke, and suddenly, his hand flew out from under his cloak, and there was a black flash._

"_LUCY HEARTFILIA!" Future Rogue roared, and the metal flash of a knife became clear as it shot towards Lucy, shrouded in shadows._

_The blond couldn't move, her eyes wide with shock. "Huh?"_

"_LUCY!" Natsu shouted, turning to face her – and suddenly, he couldn't move._

_The knife shot forward – and out of nowhere, Future Lucy was in front of Lucy, her hand outstretched as she leaped in front of the knife. The blade buried itself into her chest with a spray of blood._

_She hit the ground with a thud, and didn't move._

_Lucy whipped around, staring at her future self's fallen form. "H-hey, you…!"_

"_Lucy!" Happy cried, running towards the collapsed blond._

_Behind him, Future Rogue's eyes widened. "Another Lucy?!" he exclaimed._

_And suddenly, everything changed._

_Memories raced through the fire wizard's head, and the crossed scars in his side ached, and he knew that enough blood had been shed, that he'd had enough of this one damned memory on repeat in his dreams ever since it happened, that _this_ was enough – but somehow, it wasn't over._

_Natsu felt the charge of the air increasing, and everyone else melted away; Wendy and Loke and the Exceeds all disappearing into wisps. Shadows climbed up the walls, choking out the torches and dimming to room to be unsettlingly shadowed. All that remained was Lucy, kneeling beside her future self with trembling shoulders; Future Rogue, his Shadow Dragon Slayer magic still pulsing between the fingers of a raised hand, and – Natsu._

_Natsu gritted his teeth, straining to move, his muscles frozen; looking down, his eyes widened as he saw shadows curling up his body, somehow holding him tight and blocking him from moving a muscle. Shock and adrenaline shooting through his body, Natsu felt his limbs spasm as he tried to break free of the black binds. "LUCY!"_

_Behind Natsu, an ominously dark grimace spread over Future Rogue's face._

"_Having two of you won't help – I came here to kill Lucy Heartfilia; no matter how many times she has to die, I will complete my mission. Illusions and tricks won't stop me!"_

_Natsu's eyes locked on Future Rogue as he dipped his hand back into his cloak, and clutched in it when his hand reappeared was–_

_No; no, this was all _wrong_._

_The glint of a second knife flashed in the dimmed torches. Natsu knew what was going to happen next – he didn't remember it, he racked his brain for the memory, but it's not there – and yet, he knew what was coming. Knew what anguish the future held._

"_No…" Natsu whispered, still stuck in place by the shadows. "No – LUCY! LUCY, MOVE!"_

_Lucy looked up, her blond hair swishing around her head as everything slowed down to an agonizing pace yet again. With a malicious scowl, Future Rogue let the knife slip from his fingers, shooting through the air, propelled by his Shadow Dragonslayer magic._

_Natsu's eyes were wide the whole time as it met its mark, sinking itself into Lucy's chest and splattering blood over her clothes._

_With a cry, the Celestial wizard fell backwards to the floor, her back hitting the ground with a soft thump. Her chest shuddered as she tried to draw in another breath, and blood stained her lips as she coughed._

_Natsu needed to struggle, needed to break free and pull himself towards her, but he was frozen as he watched his best friend, dying all over again. Except this time it was different – this time, instead of just watching her die once, and being left with his Lucy, they would both be dead. He didn't have any Lucy's left. He had been given two of her to protect, and they were both gone within the span of a few minutes, their lives snuffed out by the shadows of the same man._

_The man who had stopped Natsu from saving her._

_And now, he'd watched her die not once, but twice._

"_Good…" Future Rogue murmured._

_No matter if she was from the past, the present, or the future, her blood still stained the floor red._

"_Natsu…" Lucy choked out, blood dripping from her lips._

_She would still die just as quickly._

"_LUCY!" Natsu screamed, thrashing in the grip of the shadows, his thoughts polluted with death._

_Snuffed out, like a star–_

"_Now… I can rule this world safely," Future Rogue crooned, spreading his hands in joy._

–_as you did _nothing_._

_Natsu's eyes widened, and finally they opened._

"LUCY!"

Natsu gasped, and blinked sleep and memories out of his eye. As his mind shed the illusions of sleep from itself, the scene of sunlight on a wooden floor, a fluffy pink comforter tangled around his legs, and his own hand, outstretched, trying to catch a ghost, became clear at last.

The wizard sat there for a moment, in Lucy's bed his legs trapped in blankets instead of shadows, his chest heaving as if he'd just run a marathon – when suddenly, he remembered.

Natsu recalled coming to Lucy's last night after running out of food money, asking for a place to crash, as per usual. Sighing, she had offered the dragonslayer her bed, resigning to sleep on the floor next to him with a blanket and a pillow thrown onto the hardwood floor.

Heart racing, Natsu whipped around to look at the floor. He knew his partner's sleeping form would quell the panic in him and reassure him that she was okay, that she hadn't had a knife buried in her to match her future self, all the way back during the Grand Magic Games.

He stared down at the floor – only to find a folded blanket set delicately on a pillow.

His insides felt cold as the dragonslayer tensed and his eyes darted over every inch of the apartment, looking for any signs of Lucy, coming up with nothing.

She was gone.

Ripping his legs free of the sheets, Natsu stumbled onto the floor and dashed over to the kitchen, combing every detail before slamming the door shut with a growl of frustration mixed with fear. An image of Lucy's body, bled out and lifeless, sitting beside her future self in the same state, made him grip the doorknob with all his strength in an attempt to will the image away. Feeling the metal dent under his fingers, Natsu wiped away the sweat dripping down his face and stared at his trembling hands.

He had to find her.

He had to find Lucy.

Nothing else mattered at the moment.

Behind him, he heard a rustle; however, when he turned to look as fast as he was capable, the only sight that greeted his eyes was Happy, rubbing his eyes and yawning.

"G'morning, Natsu," the Exceed murmured, his voice still laced with sleepiness. Natsu, who normally would have greeted his buddy with a cheerful reply, simply turned away, hurrying to the bathroom to see if Lucy was hiding in there for some reason. His mind was operating on a single though, and that was it: Find Lucy.

"What're you doing?" Happy asked, hopping down from the bed. Natsu didn't take a second to reply. His eyes darted over everything – the sink, the bathtub, the neatly folded towels in the corner – but no Lucy. Growling, he slammed the door shut, earning a little squeak of surprise from Happy.

"Geez, what's wrong with you?" he heard Happy remark. "If you keep crashing Lucy's stuff around like that she'll gut you like a fish."

"Where is she?" Natsu rasped, stalking over to her bed before dropping to his knees to stick his head under the bed, in the slim chance she was under there. Happy blinked at him in confusion.

"Huh?"

Gritting his teeth at the sight of no Lucy yet again, and at the Exceed's confusion, Natsu pulled his head out and glared at his little buddy. "_Lucy!_ Where. Is. Lucy," he snarled, his patience worn away by fear.

Slightly taken aback by his anger, Happy frowned thoughtfully, putting a paw on his chin. "I dunno; maybe she went out, or she's at the guild, I guess."

Growling irritably, Natsu sprang to his feet, his bare feet sliding against the hardwood floor before he got a grip.

And he ran like hell.

**FT**

Lucy was really, really sick of having to go out practically _every day_ to restock her fridge.

As she walked down the streets of Magnolia, her heels clicking on the cobblestone, she couldn't help but admire how beautiful the morning was. After rainy skies all of yesterday – which Juvia insisted wasn't her fault until Gray had to calm her down – yellow sunshine was breaking through the remaining white clouds that dappled the clear blue sky. As the light hit Lucy, her hair glowed gold and her eyes gleamed with life. Yes, today was certainly nothing but a good and beautiful day.

At least, that's what Lucy had _thought_, until she'd gotten up from her uncomfortable night of sleeping on the floor and found her refrigerator completely bare, the only remains of her once-plentiful stock of food being the occasional wrappers and a multitude of empty containers. And because she knew she couldn't've eaten an entire fridge's worth of food in her sleep, the only answer possible was that it was the courtesy of one idiot dragonslayer.

And so, because of that moron, she had been forced into spending the first half of her once-beautiful morning struggling around the crowds in the market while being required to throw away her hard-earned money. Lucy hadn't been planning on restocking her food supply until next week at least, and so the money she'd used had originally been going towards her rent. Now, she would have to go on an extra job this week, just to get enough money for rent _and_ to buy food again next week.

"I hope Natsu's ready because he's getting a good smack on the head once I get back!" Lucy muttered furiously.

But then again….

Her mind was cast back to when she first woke up, cursing her partner and rubbing her aching neck. As she had risen, she'd caught a glimpse of who was on her bed.

Natsu.

Of course, she knew he was there – she'd forfeited a night of sleeping on her beautiful bed just for his sake – but something about his face, and the serenity his sleeping countenance captured… somehow, the dragonslayer whom she knew to be a being of destruction and destroyer of fridges looked young. Innocent. And just… at peace.

And okay, maybe he looked a little cute, too.

Thinking back to his sleeping form, the irritation in Lucy seemed to wash away. She was just tired, and ached from sleeping on the floor. Plus, her fridge hadn't been _that_ full.

Glancing down at the abundance of groceries in her arms, a small smile played across her lips. Yeah – there was no reason to punish him, right? Plus, she could always force him to reimburse her, for the sake of her rent money. And it wasn't like Lucy _minded_ going out on an extra job or two; they were always fun, so long as Natsu and Happy were with her. Otherwise it would just be boring.

Her smile bloomed across her face, and a new spring appeared in her step as she continued to make her way home. As Lucy walked, a plan formed in her mind. She would come home, being careful not to disturb Natsu and Happy – knowing them, they'd still be fast asleep – and then, as quietly as she could, she would make them all breakfast. It would be a lot of work, knowing Natsu's appetite, but to have a nice, relaxing morning, to just sit down and eat breakfast together, with no distractions….

Oh, who was she kidding. It was probably gonna end in flames, like everything involving Natsu did.

Then, as Lucy was rounding the corner onto Strawberry Street, already formulating a strategy in her head on how to get some of the breakfast she had yet to make before Natsu consumed it all, she was greeted with a surprise.

"Huh?"

She squinted. And stared.

Gleaming in the sunlight all the way down her street, was a head of pink hair, shining every shade of coral she could think of. Confusion flooded her mind, and she mentally backpedaled to when she had left her apartment. Had she been mistaken when she left?

Because Natsu was standing right there – dressed only in his pajama pants and scarf, she noted embarrassedly – and he was very evidently awake. Yep, completely awake; and for some reason, frantically talking to some older woman. From the way his arms were waving, Natsu was trying to ask her something, but she was shaking her head, obviously not knowing what he was talking about.

Lucy caught a glimpse of his face, and her confusion was joined by concern as she saw his distressed expression. Was something wrong? His expression was akin to panic; had something happened? She hadn't been gone _that_ long – and if he destroyed something in her apartment, she would have his head–

Natsu saw her, and stopped dead in his tracks.

Lucy felt her body warm at his gaze, and automatically blamed it on the sunlight as his eyes widened. Relief and what looked like pain tore at his expression, fighting on his face as he stared at Lucy.

Her eyes squinted slightly in confusion. There was something wrong, she was sure of it now. But what on earth could be enough to rattle Natsu, of all people? He was the rock in their group, the one who was never fazed by anything – and if he was, then he would quickly recover and beat up the cause of their sorrow just as swiftly.

In other words, this was downright odd.

Lucy found herself stepping towards him, moving one foot, and then another.

"Natsu–"

Before she could finish, he started running.

And before she could blink, he was right in front of her, his obsidian eyes reflecting her confused expression as he stared at her in pure astonishment, and – relief.

Lucy didn't move; she just watched him, knowing that whatever he was going to do next would be to fix the ache he surely had inside him. That was what he did; he fixed the pain people felt in their hearts with his actions, and even sometimes with his words.

Lucy stood still as suddenly, he raised his arms and pulled her into a hug. Her body pressed against his, their warmth intertwining. She used one hand to set her grocery bag on the ground and then returned his gesture, wrapping her arms around his lean frame. His body trembled ever so slightly, and Lucy wanted nothing more than to pull away and ask one of the multitudes of confused questions that were on her tongue, but she knew that he needed this. Somehow, something had happened, and she would surely find out whatever had happened later; but for now, this was all she had to do.

"Natsu," she murmured, a few moments into their embrace. For a second, he didn't move.

Then he pulled back, a smile on his face as bright as the sunlight shining down upon them.

"You got any food there, Lucy?"

She stiffened immediately as he snatched up her grocery bag, quick as lightning, and started running back towards her apartment. "Natsu, don't you dare!" she screeched, racing after him with her fists waving in the air, promising to deliver revenge. Because if he ate all the food she had just bought, there would be hell to pay.

Oh, who was she trying to kidding? Those groceries would be completely demolished by the time she caught up to him. Already planning out a way to get three missions done in the next two days in order to cover rent and food expenses, Lucy found herself laughing lightly, despite her situation.

It was a beautiful morning; why not live a little?

**Hey hey hey kids. Yep, it's time; I finally posted another fanfic. Wonderful, huh? This is just something I thought up after reading the GMG, and of course, finished it about four months after thinking of the idea. But anyways.**

**Angst! Nice, delicious angst. My favorite. I kept it chill in this one, but other ones might actually be heartbreaking. Get ready.**

**I have a few more oneshots I might upload, along with a long thing I need to finish, so get ready for that in upcoming days. Weeks. Months.**

**That's all for now, kids. Enjoy.**

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